Before I had even heard of the movie, my friends were raving about the Garden State soundtrack. I picked up a copy (of the CD, I didn’t watch the movie until years later) and thought it was pretty good. If you have the CD, pull it out and listen to Track 6 and you might recognize the singer’s voice. It’s Cary Brothers (first name Cary, last name Brothers) and he’s been featured on all kinds of shows like Bones, Smallville, and ER, and is one of those kids lucky (or unlucky, depending on your indie-music snobbery levels) to have Zach Braff as a huge fan — in addition to GS, it landed him on the soundtrack for The Last Kiss as well. Regardless, Who You Are dropped May 29 and the 14 tracks really showcase his deliberate and down-home sound. Paired with an acoustic guitar and a slightly rough voice, he sings a blend of dreamy pop songs which I think are more coffee shop and less driving music. He also is the founder of the Hotel Cafe Tour, which is based off what I consider one of the best small music venues in Los Angeles, which is also the namesake for the tour. His tour kicks off on July 11th with a night at SoHo in my town of Santa Barbara. I know that Heather is a massive fan, and was fortunate enough to be invited to his private showcase last week at The Box in NYC. She says despite both his and his bands’ mountain-man appearances — an element she found strangely endearing — he’s the real deal and definitely worth checking out both live and on record.